When the country bore the brunt of the pandemic in 2020, the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) ensured to the public that it could still fulfill its mandate to promote and preserve the best of Filipino arts and culture. On March 13, 2020, the CCP complied with the decision to shut down all its public venues and postponed all productions and events indefinitely due to the country’s precautions. However, despite these restrictions, CCP found their way to thrive through online platforms. This was the start of the transition of online performances for the Center.

For years, the Center has embarked on digitizing its archives. It proved to be quite a pioneering and progressive project because it became a lifeline for the center’s artistic endeavors. As directed by the Philippine government, CCP functioned on a skeleton workforce, with restricted access for employees and cultural workers. With the theaters closed, the CCP couldn’t produce any shows; hence, limited livelihood for the artists. 

The CCP Board of Trustees calibrated the response to the pandemic affecting the creative industry and implemented the Innovation Grants Program which provided financial support to seven art and culture organizations so they could create and produce new works in various art disciplines and distribute these new content using online technology, blended, and hybrid technologies.

The new programming brought to “online stages” different shows such as virtual pocket concerts of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, dubbed Music for Healing: PPO in Quarantine, Virgin Labfest’s online edition using Zoom and Facebook Live, and Cinemalaya screening short films in competition in Vimeo. 

“These interventions and responses proved that arts could not be curtailed. Even a pandemic can’t stop people from engaging in arts. In fact, art is what sustained them throughout the most challenging time in this era,” said CCP president ad interim Michelle Nikki Junia.

No matter what the obstacles, CCP remains committed to its mandate, and these efforts earned recognition from the inaugural The Living Laurels Awards, organized by the Malaya Business Insights. 

The CCP recently received The Pandemic Resilience Award for “its outstanding contributions to the lifestyle industry and reaffirm its steadfast dedication to excellence in lifestyle endeavors.” The award recognizes the organizations or individuals who adapted and thrived during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Despite the challenges we might face shortly, whether it is pandemic, natural disasters, or man-made situations, including budget cuts, the CCP will continue to champion a thriving local creative industry that respects tradition, spurs innovation, increases social awareness, and enriches the Philippine national brand,” said Junia.

The CCP also received The Arts Visionary and Local Artisan Showcase Award for one of its most-anticipated festivals, the Virgin Labfest. The award was given to organizations that promote emerging local artists and craftsmen who have created outstanding and notable pieces.

Twenty years since it was launched, the VLF serves as a laboratory and experimental stage for untried, unstaged, and untested one-act plays written by up-and-coming playwrights from different regions. 

“From putting the spotlight on Filipino playwrights, VLF also becomes a safe space for directors, actors, stage managers, and technical crew who come together to bring ‘virgin’ one-act plays to audiences. From a one-week run, it grew to a three-week festival featuring 12 new plays and 3 revisited plays. Together with the Writers’ Bloc and CCP resident theater company Tanghalang Pilipino, we are proud of how far the VLF has come. Many of the playwrights who have been featured in VLF have become some of our country’s better-known playwrights, and award winners,” shared CCP artistic director Dennis N. Marasigan. 

The Living Laurels Awards also recognized other organizations in different categories such as the Digital Transformation Excellence Award,  Sustainable Lifestyle Champion Award, Mental Health and Wellness Advocate, Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Award, Innovative Health and Fitness Solutions Award, Hybrid Work-Life Integration Awards, Creative Culinary Excellence Award, Jake Macasaet Legacy Award, Joy Delos Reyes Community Impact Award, Pocholo Romualdez Media Excellence Award, and Che Francisco PR Excellence Award.

CCP also received recognition from the Metrobank Foundation Inc. for being a Partner in Empowerment, Advocacy, and Commitment to Excellence (PEACE). This award is presented every five years to recognize partners that have collaborated impactfully with MBFI to uplift the lives of the most vulnerable and underserved sectors in Philippine society.

“We dedicate these awards to the people who worked hard and diligently during the most turbulent time in recent years, and for the Filipino people who have supported the CCP through the years,” concluded Junia during one of the award ceremonies.

For updates on CCP’s events and productions, follow the official CCP social media accounts on Facebook, X, Instagram and Tiktok. You can also watch CCP digital content on the CCP YouTube Channel. 

The Health & Wellness Confex 2024 recently concluded at the SMX Center in Pasay City, on a high note, with government and private sector representatives pledging to work together to promote the Philippines as a prime health and wellness tourist destination. 

The event, a three-day gathering of health and tourism industry stakeholders that began on Friday, Jan. 26, was kicked off by such luminaries as Department of Health (DOH) secretary Dr. Teodoro J. Herbosa, Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) secretary Benjamin C. Abalos, Jr., Department of Tourism (DOT) undersecretary Myra Paz Valderrosa-Abubakar, and Pasay City Mayor Imelda Calixto-Rubiano.

In his keynote address, Herbosa said supporting wellness tourism is now a priority for the DOH. This was confirmed by Dr. Maria Francia Miciano-Laxamana, DOH undersecretary for medical tourism, who pointed out in her presentation that ensuring the safety and health of tourists is a major department objective. 

Meanwhile, Abalos emphasized the importance of being healthy and leading a healthy lifestyle. He talked about his mother’s passing due to the coronavirus back in 2022. While it was a tragedy, he said it also marked the beginning of his health and wellness journey. “While at the hospital, I had nothing to do. Everyone was wearing masks and PPEs (personal protective equipment). I was the only one in shorts and I had to sign a waiver because I insisted on staying with my mother at the ICU,” he narrated. “I couldn’t do much so I did push-ups. After only three push-ups, my hands were shaking. But I forced myself to continue, and you know what? Today, I’m doing 139 push-ups every day.” 

“I’ve also been running every week and I spend one hour in the gym every day,” he added. “Health and wellness are all about attitude and it should be a priority for everyone regardless of age,” he said.

Calixto-Rubiano echoed the importance of having the right mentality towards health and wellness. She also talked about the various health and wellness programs of the Pasay City government, including the empowering mothers and infants or EMI project. “We are aligned with the First 1,000 Days program, a public health initiative that aims to provide comprehensive health and nutrition support during the first 1,000 days of a child’s life,” she said.

In addition, the city implements feeding programs, conducts free medical tests, and extends support for COVID-19 patients.

The first day’s list of speakers also included Wanda Teo, former DOT secretary, and  Cynthia Lagdameo Carrion, Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) general manager and CEO. Every speaker focused on their unique perspectives, but all of them emphasized the need to integrate health and wellness into the tourism industry.

The messages particularly cited the huge boost the recent collaborative efforts between the DOT and DOH would give to the campaign to promote the Philippines as a prime health and wellness tourist destination.

Another highlight of the first day of the Health and Wellness Confex 2024 conference was a roundtable discussion about the Filipino brand of wellness. The discussion was moderated by Catherine Turvill, Wellness Nurture Village founder and president. The panel was made up of Jennifer Sanvictores, The Farm at San Benito global head of sales and marketing communications, Vikki C. Aquino, Okada Manila director of The Retreat Spa, Kenneth Trullench, Las Caidas Wellness Resort Wellness Resort manager, and Atho De La Cruz, Ilaya Retreat Spa at Damires Hills Farm and Spa Resort Spa and Wellness director. 

The second day of the Health & Wellness Confex 2024 was a thrilling journey through the latest in travel, technology, and natural wellness. Attendees were treated to an array of workshops and demonstrations that not only showcased the future of wellness travel but also delved into the cutting-edge technology shaping the health industry.

A highlight was the series of workshops dedicated to natural and organic anti-aging practices. Experts in dermatology and holistic health unveiled the latest research and techniques in natural skincare, emphasizing sustainable and chemical-free approaches to maintaining youthfulness and vitality.The final day of the event took a vibrant turn with the holding of the Masigabo Wellness Festival, a special celebration that was especially dedicated to Filipino migrant workers, more commonly known as overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).  

The presence of Jerome A. Alcantara, Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) assistant secretary, underscored the government’s commitment to supporting OFWs. In his message, Alcanta lauded the resilience and hard work of the Filipino diaspora and emphasized the importance of initiatives like Masigabo in fostering a sense of unity and pride among Filipinos worldwide. Tourism representatives, meanwhile, sought to enlist OFWs to become health and wellness ambassadors. 

The Masigabo Festival not only brought the event to a memorable close, but also reinforced the theme of holistic health by celebrating the connection between cultural well-being and physical wellness. Attendees left with not just knowledge of and insights into health and wellness, but also a deeper appreciation for the cultural ties that bind the Filipino community together.

Co-presented by the Department of Tourism (DOT), in partnership with the Department of Health (DOH), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), and the Philippine Gaming and Amusement Corporation; the event is likewise supported by the Department of Agriculture, Department of Migrant Workers, Tourism Promotions Board, and Duty Free Philippines.

The Health & Wellness CONFEX 2024 is also made possible by the following:

Major Sponsors: Philippine Retirement Authority, Enjoy Health, Lifecore Bio Integrative Inc., Dean & Deluca Philippines, The Zen Institute, Conrad Manila, The Farm at San Benito, Nurture Wellness Village, Organique, CWC Interiors, Pots for Plants, and Center for Healthy Aging and Regenerative Medicine (CHARM), Lanson Place, Networld Hotel, Lime Hotels & Resorts;

Minor Sponsors: Food Club, Sonia’s Garden, Annapoorna, Happy Garden Café, Holistic Integrative Care Center Philippines (HICC), Aba Pardes, King Fu Express, Piggy Papa, The Belle Salon, Speir Modern Residences;

Event Partners: IQ Capture Printing Corporation, Ark of Dreams, Market Social, SMX Convention Center, DigitalCircles Marketing Services, and Phildiz Studios;

Media Partners: GMA Network, ABS-CBN Corporation, GMA 7 GTV, Aliw Channel 23, Asian Journal, Balikbayan Magazine, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Business Mirror, Daily Tribune, Digital Out Of Home Media (DOOH), Manila Standard, Rising Tigers, DZRH, Entrepinas TV, and Quezon City Performing Arts Development Foundation Inc.

Telco Partner: Globe 

Organizers and Event Managers: Mblessed Travel & Marketing, Inc. and Concept One Management Services.

From the creative concept of Mblessed Travel and Marketing, Inc., the Health & Wellness CONFEX 2024 was spearheaded by a team of seasoned event organizers, wellness advocates, travel and tours agencies, and marketing & communication professionals, and with the country’s wellness guru, Cory Quirino, as its Executive Director.

As the Health & Wellness Confex 2024 concluded, participants were already looking forward to next year’s event, anticipating more innovations, learning, and community celebrations that lie at the heart of this unique gathering.

By CARMENCITA “CHINGGAY” JASARENO-BERNARDO

In the recent tour of The Nightingales (soprano duo), under the Mabuhay Philippines program of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) Cultural Exchange Department, several high-spirited Pinoys in Europe took the lead in supporting and organizing the performances and workshops mounted for the Filipino migrants and overseas workers.

The Mabuhay Philippines tour was held from October 20 to November 5, 2023, and covered four countries in Europe, namely the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, and Italy.  For each community the Mabuhay Philippines program visited, a group of Filipinos took on the challenging tasks of arranging and coordinating the venues, technical facilities, lodging, meals, and transportation for the eight-member touring party (Alfred Samonte, Bianca Camille Lopez, Keiko Cayanga, Ian Aguila, Cecile Mambuay, Lolito Pontillas, Marichelle Bernardo and including the author), and audience mobilization among others. 

To host a visiting Philippine performing or cultural troupe entails a lot of tedious work, communications, and networking. These tasks, in turn, require a huge amount of patience, energy, enthusiasm, and perseverance.   Thankfully, the hosts in all the sites have proven that they were up to the challenge, and possess all these traits.  Despite their busy schedules with their professional work and personal lives, they took time and effort to prepare everything we needed for the tour and that was why the performances and workshops were successfully done.

In Gouda South Holland, the Filipino Catholic Community (FCC), led by board member Amor Van Os, has been actively involved in various activities that keep the Filipinos interacting, engaging, and socializing while extending different services to the community, especially through the celebration of Holy Mass during Sundays and other important occasions. 

The Pinoys in Gouda ensure to continue the Philippine traditions they grew up with; the most valuable of which is celebrating life together as a happy and content family.  Lovella, who hails from Mindanao and is married to Lenard van der Weiden, welcomed the CCP contingent (Lolito Pontillas of Agusan del Sur and the author) to their home, even spending time with the group and held meetings with other Pinoys.  Lea Saga-Van Rhijin from Bulacan, a licensed medical technician who works in a hospital, and her husband Alex, a captain of a luxury liner, with their two boys, let puni artist Marichelle Bernardo of Bulacan and theater-dance facilitator Cecile Mambuay of Cagayan de Oro/Marawi stay with the family while in Europe. 

The bubbliest woman in the group was Elpie Gutierez from Tacloban City who also works in a hospital and accepts sewing services at home during her off-duty days.  Ate Elpie, who is married to Han Clercq, hosted Alfred Samonte, artistic director of The Nightingales, and prepared a sumptuous meal for the whole team on their last day in Gouda.   

Mary Jane Osigan Streefland, another FCC officer, hosted the soprano duo Bianca Camille Lopez-Aguila, Keiko Cressida Cayanga, and production manager Ian Aguila. During the few days, the MP Team stayed with these families, they saw the best of Filipino hospitality, something that the group was always thankful for.

On October 23, the group took a seven-hour trip from Rotterdam, Netherlands to Bonn in Germany via the Flix Bus. Amid the chilly weather, the team felt the warm welcome from their host Pinay vlogger and digital content creator Stephanie Mae Dorp, who with another kind of Pinoy migrant waited for the arrival of the team at the bus terminal and helped the team settled in at their lodgings.

The following day, the group headed to Cologne for the concert at the Missione Cattolica Italiana, Ursula Church, through the arrangements made by the Filipino Catholic Community of Cologne.  The Nightingales performed classic and contemporary songs to the community of Filipino migrants and their families.  The most applauded number was the medley of Filipino folk songs which brought back memories of hometowns from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao among the audiences.  The program ended with heartwarming Christmas songs that made everyone sentimental but cheerful.

On October 25, the team stayed with couple Stephanie and Papi with their children Nathan, Tipoy, and Arya at Robert-Havemam Strasse. After a delightful spread of European delights and Filipino favorites, the group held two workshops in the living room with a small group of Pinoys.  The children eagerly participated in puni leaf art workshop led by Bernardo, and the Mindanao dance workshop conducted by Pontillas.

To cap the day’s event, The Nightingales performed a short program, set up in the small hallway.  It was streamed live by Steph on her Team Blended FB page and reached 23,000 views, 1,000 likes, 300 comments, and 57 shares (as of October 28). As of writing this article, the Youtube viewership of the said concert, which was uploaded to the Team Blended channel, has already reached 62,000 views, 219 comments, and 3500 likes.

The CCP aims to reach the Filipinos around the world. Through the live stream on Steph’s channel, the Mabuhay Philippines activity was accessed by her 301,000 subscribers on YouTube and 197,000 followers/friends on Facebook. The team’s visit to Bonn was made even more memorable with the thoughtfulness of Ernesto Labra Jr. from Cebu City, and Mandy and Dhong Mabandos from Mati, Davao Oriental.

From Germany, the MP team traveled for 18 hours via Flix Bus and moved to Spain. After arriving in Barcelona, the team headed to the Parroquia Inmaculada Concepcion Y San Lorenzo Ruiz Church for their third engagement.   

After some hesitation because he has only been the parish priest for over a year, Fr. Lino Castro, who hails from Alfonso, Cavite, hosted and presented the Mabuhay Philippines program in Barcelona.  The team was well-received and taken care of by a huge Filipino community who gave their genuine Filipino hospitality, from preparing their daily meals to lodging needs and sightseeing tours to the majestic Sagrada Familia and Our Lady of Montserrat, among other tourist destinations.

The October 29 concert and workshops on puni leaf art, Mindanao dance, and music were very well-attended by the kababayans who were seemingly gifted with varied artistic talents.  Ate Mina Perez was superbly kind as she accompanied and assisted the group in all our engagements in Barcelona.

Italy was the group’s last stop. While there were no performances or workshops, the team linked up with fellow Filipinos in Florence, who could be potential partners and collaborators for the next edition of the Mabuhay Philippines program.

The team observed that Filipinos and Italians have many good things in common; kindness is one.  In Firenze, they were given a complimentary stay in a beautiful European villa owned by Filippo Detaglia, a friend of Corazon Sugui from Gapan, Nueva Ecija who has been working in Italy for over two decades. 

Ferdinand Bong Beltran from Lemery, Batangas, who has been working in Italy for over seven years, assisted the team with their transportation needs in Italy. Weeks later after the team went back to Manila, sad news of Filippo’s passing reached them. During their stay in Firenze, the author got a chance to speak to him over the phone to personally thank him for his generosity, and in that brief moment, the author felt his warm and gentle persona.

Hats off to all the Pinoy hosts and organizers in the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, and Italy who have shown their admirable Filipino traits – resilient, hardworking, adaptable, bighearted, creative, patient, generous, and amusing.  The team expressed their gratitude to each of them – Bedankt, Danke, Gracias, Grazie, Maraming Salamat!  

Indeed, in every corner of the world, most kababayans are not just high-spirited and making valuable contributions to the global community, but are also avid supporters of Philippine arts and culture.  This is a reason to be joyful and anticipate more cultural experiences and exchanges under the Mabuhay Philippines program of the CCP Cultural Exchange.